“More Than Words” is a male vocal acoustic rock song. Mike Anderson handled all of the recording chores while Mike Bono wrote and performed the tune.

Reviewed By: Marty Peters

Rating: 0

Recording: There is a term, “good bones”, that is often used in the real estate market to describe a solid structure which shows a lot of potential. What Mike and Mike have presented here is exactly that, translated to the recording world of course. We liked the jangly acoustic guitar with its harpsichord vibe, and the lead vocal sits nicely in the mix without too much artifact.

Less successful are the bass and the drum programming. While the bass is distinguishable, the tone is weak and really doesn’t provide a solid low-end counterpoint to all of the jangle. As for the drums, well, the idea is there and the part itself is realistic enough, however (like so many programmed drums that we hear) the tones just don’t have it. The Digidesign Strike software is certainly capable of better, and the fact that Mike A. had the Waves Gold bundle at his disposal leads us to believe that the drum part was either hastily constructed, or that Mike needs to spend a few more hours with his software to maximize its potential.

Suggestions: It is only natural for many of us to rush into a project with a new piece of gear without fully understanding its parameters or potential. In many ways it’s Christmas morning all over again: “Hey, I want to ride my new bike, I’ll look at the directions later”. The problem is that sometimes the rear wheel falls off cause we didn’t bother to read the manual. Now magnify that simple scenario by a few thousand times and you’re into the Strike and Gold Bundle arena.

Our suggestion to Mike A. then is that he spend some quality time with Strike, you know, like bonding, but in a software kinda way. Get to know each other and he’ll have your back in no time. As for the bass, once the drums are straightened out, re-track it and use the Waves eq to give it some body.